The Problem
Most self-help content peddles passive hope. "Just wait." "It gets better." "Time heals all wounds." These platitudes collapse under scrutiny.
Philosophy – actual philosophical traditions spanning millennia – offers something different: frameworks for understanding and navigating difficulty. Not fairy tales. Not marketing copy. Intellectual tools.
But philosophical knowledge is scattered, dense, and intimidating. Which school aligns with your situation? Your timeline? Your worldview? How do you compare Stoicism to Marxism to Zen Buddhism without spending years in academic study?
Our Approach
We analyzed 70 philosophical schools using a consistent framework:
- Answer: When does this school say it gets easier?
- Mechanism: Internal rewiring? Accept the suck? External restructuring? Eschatological salvation?
- Timeline: Immediate? Years? Decades? Multiple lifetimes? Never?
- Locus of Control: Individual action? Collective movement? Mixed?
- Practical Lever: What specific action does this philosophy recommend?
The result: a comparative database revealing patterns across traditions. 24 schools focus on internal transformation. 18 demand radical acceptance. 15 require systemic change. 13 promise eventual salvation or transcendence.
What We Found
Zero passive solutions. Not one philosophical school says "just wait and it'll get better."
Every tradition – from Stoicism to Marxism, from Buddhism to Effective Altruism – requires action, transformation, or radical reorientation. Some demand you change your mind. Some demand you change the world. Some demand you change what "easier" means.
The diversity is striking. Stoicism says it never gets easier, but your suffering is a cognitive error. Buddhism says decades of meditative practice dissolve the illusion of a suffering self. Marxism says individual suffering stems from class oppression requiring revolution. Effective Altruism says optimize impact and accept permanent moral discomfort.
No universal answer exists. Your situation, timeline, and worldview determine which framework – if any – applies to you.
How to Use This Site
Three tools are available:
Browse All Schools →
Explore all 70 philosophical schools. Filter by mechanism, timeline, or locus of control. Read detailed explanations and practical applications.
Compare Schools Side-by-Side →
Add schools to comparison. View mechanisms, timelines, and approaches simultaneously. Understand contradictions and complementary perspectives.
Decision Framework →
Answer 4 questions about your situation, timeline, preferred action style, and worldview. Get matched with compatible philosophical schools.
What This Isn't
This site is not:
- Professional philosophical counseling or therapy
- A substitute for mental health treatment
- Authoritative teaching from living philosophical traditions
- A recommendation that any specific philosophy is "correct"
- A guarantee that any framework will help your specific situation
This is comparative analysis for educational purposes. If you're experiencing mental health crises, seek professional help immediately. See our Disclaimer for crisis resources.
Who We Are
When Will It Become Easier? is created and maintained by Fibonacci 7.
We believe philosophy should be accessible without sacrificing intellectual rigor. No marketing speak. No false promises. No passive solutions masquerading as wisdom.
This project synthesizes academic research, primary source texts, and philosophical scholarship into a comparative framework. We welcome corrections, suggestions, and constructive criticism.
Get in Touch
Questions? Corrections? Suggestions for additional philosophical schools?